Xcode Hardware Performance

These are the results from running Xcode on a non-trivial open source project using various Macs. The goal is to give developers a relative idea of how each computer model compares to one another. Read the specifics and contributing sections for more info.

Computer Model	CPU	RAM	Fresh Build Time	Incremental Build Time
MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015)	1.1 GHz Intel Core M	8 GB	3:00	0:12
MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Early 2013)	2.4 GHz Intel Core i7	8 GB	0:47	0:10
MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Mid 2014)	2.2 GHz Intel Core i7	16 GB	0:51	0:07
MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Mid 2015)	2.8 GHz Intel Core i7	16 GB	0:39	0:07
iMac (HDD 1 TB, 21.5-inch, Late 2012)	2.7 GHz Intel Core i5	8 GB	4:15	0:33
iMac 5K (512GB Flash, 27-inch, Late 2015)	4.0Ghz Intel Core i7	32 GB	0:28	0:06
Mac Pro (Flash Storage, Late 2013)	3.5 GHz 6-Core Intel Xeon E5	32 GB	0:30	0:05

Specifications

For the test, I decided to use an app that I actually work on: eidolon.

For "fresh" builds, I cleaned the build folder (⌘⇧K) repeatedly until it worked with no permissions problems. Then I sat and waited for Xcode to index the project. I also made sure the simulator was closed, so these times include booting the simulator and launching the app. Then I hit ⌘R and start a timer, only ending it when the app had fully launched.

"Incremental" builds represent a more common use case: changing one file and recompiling with the simulator already running. I added print("hello!") to application(: didFinishLaunchingWithOptions:) and hit ⌘R, timing the time it took for the app to launch.

I repeated each test a few times and took their average times.

Contributing

It would be super-cool if we could perform the above tests on a variety of machines and consolidate the results here. You can follow the instructions to download the code and the project dependencies, and send a pull request adding your own results. I'd super-appreciate it! 🙇

Please note that this project is released with a Contributor Code of Conduct. By participating in this project, you agree to abide by [its terms](/Code of Conduct.md).

License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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